Firefighter injured in Spring Lane rock-throwing incident

A FIREFIGHTER was injured following a rock-throwing incident while attending a fire at Spring Lane last night.

A unit from Anglesea Street Cork City Fire Brigade attended the scene of a small fire at the entrance to the Ballyvolane halting site at approximately 9.30pm.

The crew was forced to retreat after pieces of rubble were thrown at them, with one sustaining injuries to his leg. He was taken to hospital.

Later on, at approximately 11.40pm, a second unit from Ballyvolane Cork City Fire Brigade attended another incident at the same location, Munster Fire Control confirmed to The Echo.

The incidents come in the wake of high tension in the area related to an illegal dumping operation on council-owned land next to a Traveller halting site and just over three months after a private security firm hired by Cork City Council to guard the site was forced to leave for their own safety after being threatened by an armed masked gang.

The site was the subject of a €53,000 clean-up by Cork City Council contractors in February with City Hall erecting security fencing and mounting CCTV to combat fly-tippers.

Over 4,500kgs of asbestos and 200,000kgs of domestic waste were removed in a week-long operation after the site, slated for Traveller accommodation, was target by dumpers for decades.